An Artist Visits the White House Past

From its construction in 1792, until the 1902 renovation that shaped the modern identity and functions of the interior of the White House, the fourteen paintings of this series examine the history of a national icon. Through meticulous research and tireless attention to detail, numerous sources inspired the brush of Peter Waddell to create a vision of the White House as it was, and to gain an appreciation of the nineteenth-century house and the men and women who lived and worked within its walls. From President John Quincy Adams taking a dangerous swim to Theodore Roosevelt's son in the conservatory, view the White House past through these modern looks at the past.

An Introduction

An Artist Visits the White House Past

"A Vision Takes Form"

The White House Under Construction

"A Bird that Whistles"

In Jefferson's Cabinet

"The Splendid Mrs. Madison"

In the Elliptical Saloon

"Tiber Creek: The Bathers"

John Quincy Adams Takes a Deadly Chance

"The Great Cheese"

Jacksonian Democracy Enjoys a Special Treat

"Visitors from the East"

President Buchanan Greets Visitors From Far Away

"The Visit"

A War Worker Calls for a Favor

"The Confidant"

"The Secret Garden"

"Composition in Red and Gold"

A Comfortable Room Rendered Richly

"A Favorable Day"

The White House Stables on the Day of Grant’s Second Inauguration

"Something Blue"

Captured by Color

"The Grand Illumination"

Sunset of the Gaslight Age

"Lafayette Square"

Once the White House Overlooked a Residential Neighborhood